Lecce et Salento Shopping, Italie

From Piazza Sant'Oronzo toward Porta Rudiae extend Corso Vittorio Emanuele and Via Libertini. Here and in the adjacent alley is found a great concentration of shops and artisans’ workshops.

Crafts, in Lecce and in the Salento, represent one of the most flourishing productive realities, in strong recovery thanks to the rediscovery of this part of Italy by tourism.

Paper-maché: an ancient art that has roots in the 17th and 18th century when, in the counter-Reformation period, the Church encouraged the spread of "low-cost" sacred images destined for the people, to combat Lutheran heresy.

Wrought iron and copper: with a forge and hammer, Leccese artisans even today make candle holders, chandeliers, gratings, balustrades, railings and portcullises. With copper, on the other hand, beautiful carafes, amphoras, oil containers and pans are produced.

Terra cotta: items worked from terracotta include plates, bowls, vases and lamps. The best production centers are Cutrofiano and Ruffano. Among the most curious objects are the shepherds’ penny-whistles and the classic "pupi" statues for crèches.

Leccese stone: the same soft stone that made the marvels of the Baroque possible, today is sculptured by capable artisans to create vases, lamps, and decorative items, according to the taste and tendencies of contemporary design.

Woven bulrushes: this work has taken place from time immemorial. Woven bulrushes are used as typical baskets, hampers and other containers for keeping food.

Weaving and embroidery: in the Salento the traditional olive wood loom is still used. It is of very ancient origin, some scholars trace them back as far as to the period of the Hellenic colonization.